NASA’s Curiosity rover recently captured a sweeping panorama of Mars’ Gale Crater under exceptionally favorable viewing conditions, offering one of the clearest looks yet at the vast Martian basin. Curiosity has been exploring Gale Crater since August 2012, nearly a year after its launch from Florida’s Space Coast in late 2011. The rover’s primary mission continues to be determining whether Mars ever produced environmental conditions suitable for microbial life. The rover was joined on the Red Planet by Perseverance in 2021, which, in addition to documenting the Martian surface, is taking part in a sample return program. With careful energy management, the space agency estimates the rover will be operational for at least two more years until radioactive decay takes its toll.